


What if

by poly_pr1nce



Series: Prompts [8]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Depression, M/M, Self-Harm, Suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-30
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2020-11-08 12:13:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20835278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poly_pr1nce/pseuds/poly_pr1nce
Summary: Prompt:What if Erik’d had to take in Andrew and Aaron instead of Nicky? (Like if Nicky had died before meeting them? It’s super painful to think about wow but would things have turned out differently?) OR WHAT IF LUTHER HAD HAD TO TAKE THEM IN? ugh this is so angsty and you’re the king of angst so I present this to you lol





	1. What if Erik’d took them in?

  * So Nicky's been in Germany for 6 months, and Erik is head over heels for him but knows better than to try anything cause Nicky is nowhere near being in a good enough head space
  * The boy has cuts all up his arms, always wears long sleeves with the thumb bit cut out, and hardly ever speaks   
So Erik just tries to look after him and be there for him as a good friend & host-brother
  * Then one evening he walks into Nicky's room & the ensuite door is wide open and fuck 
  * Nicky's lying curled up on the shower floor, covered in blood and shaking
  * Erik gets him to the hospital
  * At some point Nicky's coherent enough for Erik to ask what happened & Nicky cries as he tells him that his parents called and he has to go back home
  * Erik's furious but he covers it and asks why
  * Nicky says his aunt died in a car crash and he has to go back and help raise his cousins cause there's 2 of them and it's the good Christian thing to do
  * Erik's fuming
  * He's also heartbroken cause his Nicky would rather die halfway across the world than go back to his parents
  * Erik promises him he won't have to go back and his parents can't make him go back if he doesn't want to
  * At some point the hospital releases Nicky and Erik takes him back to their house   
Nicky blacks out and Erik stays with him all night just in case
  * Erik doesn't leave Nicky's side for days
  * When he does its to go to the church to ask for help
  * But part way through he gets this horrible feeling and he _knows_
  * By the time he gets back to the house it's too late
  * They fly Nicky's body back home and Erik goes with because he wants to look Nicky's parents in the eye and make sure they know it's their fault their son is dead
  * At the funeral, he sees two little blonde boys getting pulled around by Maria
  * When he goes over, intending to tell her and her husbands fault, he freezes up because one of the boys looks bored and the other
  * The other has the same look in his eye that Nicky did when they first met
  * Erik ends up saying he's sorry for their loss, and Nicky was a good friend in Germany & he would love to help out any way he can because it's what Nicky would've wanted
  * Luther brushes him off
  * But the entire time Erik can't stop looking at the twins
  * He couldn't save Nicky from his parents but maybe, maybe he can save the twins
  * I don't know how social services work but somehow Erik calls his parents who call people who call people and long story short Erik gets to take the twins back to Germany with him
  * He's been in America for a few weeks getting the paperwork sorted and the entire time, only one of the twins has spoken to him - the other one...
  * Well the other one wears long sleeves with the thumb bit cut out even though it's over 90 degrees, he hasn't said a word and his eyes
  * His eyes are the same as Nicky's were for 6 months
  * Erik tries to teach them German- just basic stuff like counting, the alphabet, directions and food
  * Aaron's the only one who seems to make an effort- Andrew just sits there curled up and silent
  * But Erik knows he's listening
  * When he gets them over to Germany and they meet his parents.. his parents only need to see Andrew to know why Erik insisted on getting custody of them
  * Neither of the twins are religious
  * Aaron tries talking German around the house and slowly gets better at it
  * Andrew spends most of his time going out and exploring the city with Erik
  * Erik doesn't know why Andrew never speaks but he doesn't hold it against him and never tries to force him to
  * The twins aren't ready for school yet so Erik and his parents decide to wait until the start of the next school year to enrol them
  * After a few weeks, Erik's passing the twins room and he hears Aaron speaking English
  * He's asking something- or saying something he expects an answer or agreement to
  * When Erik hears another voice, almost identical to Aaron's save for the fact it's a bit muffled, he freezes
  * It's the first time he's heard Andrew speak
  * He's so quiet Erik doesn't understand what he said but then Aaron answers and Andrew mumbles something else
  * The next day, Aaron's asking questions about a TV show and trying to understand the news and Erik's parents are happily explaining things to him in a mix of German and English
  * Andrew's in the kitchen trying to cook so Erik goes through to help him
  * He's already learned Andrew doesn't like his personal space being invaded so he stays an arms length away from him at all times
  * If Andrew needs him to pass anything over Erik puts it on the counter between them so that Andrew doesn't have to deal with touching his hand to take the thing from him
  * Even if Andrew never talks to him, Erik knows his efforts are appreciated
  * A week or two later he's watching TV- Aaron's in the kitchen with his parents and they're loudly making some sort of dinner and desert
  * Andrew's curled up on the arm chair and Erik's on the sofa
  * He knows Andrew's watching him and he knows not to react
  * "Why'd you do it?"
  * Andrew's voice is so quiet he almost doesn't hear him
  * But Erik knows this is a test he knows it's important he knows if he fucks up now he's lost Andrew
  * He doesn't know how the twins are about gays but he knows they're not like Nicky's parents
  * And he knows Andrew hates lies even sugar-coated truths
  * So he's 100% honest
  * "Because I loved Nicky but I couldn't save him from his parents. But I could save you two."
  * Andrew tilts his head as he processes that
  * "How much did you love him?"
  * "More than I ever thought I could love anyone"
  * "Did he love you?"
  * Erik's smile is sad when he answers - "I think he would have if we'd had more time together. He wasn't ready to let himself love anyone. But he could have been."
  * Andrew chews his lip and Erik's trying so hard not to react to the fact Andrew's finally talking to him
  * "I think he would have, too. But he loved his parents and they hurt him. Loving anyone is hard after you get hurt by it."
  * Erik's screaming internally now
  * "I would have given him all the time in the world to heal from them," he says and Andrew tilts his head the other way. "If he couldn't love me as I loved him, any kind of love would have been enough."
  * Andrew blinks slowly at him
  * And then he smiles
  * It's a small, one-sided smile and it's raw and it's the type of smile you only get after walking through hell
  * But it's a smile
  * "How do you know he didn't love you, then? Maybe not a lot, maybe not enough to see, but he must have felt something else he wouldn't have let you see how hurt he was."
  * Erik's floored
  * Andrew goes back to watching the TV in silence and Erik's just trying not to pass out
  * They have dinner and Andrew doesn't say another word
  * But Erik's grinning all evening
  * It's the happiest his parents have seen him since Nicky
  * When the twins go to bed his parents ask him what made him so happy
  * "I think we can do this," is all he says "I think we can save them. Nicky would've loved them so much; I just need to love them enough for both of us"
  * And he does


	2. What if Luther and Maria had gotten them?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alternatively...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for:  
Majorly toxic Christianity  
Homophobia  
Conversion therapy  
Selfharm   
Illegal stuff

  * So they already have partial custody of the twins as immediate family other than Tilda cause the court could tell she's an addict so she gets the week with the twins and then Luther and Maria get them every weekend

  * Which means they get taken to church every Sunday

  * Andrew hates it

  * Aaron tolerates it

  * It reminds Andrew of a foster house he was in where the family used the bible as an excuse to abuse the children

  * But when Tilda ~ dies ~ Luther and Maria get total custody immediately

  * Which means changing school to a strictly Christian protestant school which basically lives by the bible

  * It's incorporated into every class

  * Andrew is ready to kill them both and go back to juvie cause fuck this shit

  * Aaron gets forced to go cold turkey on his drugs and it's not pretty

  * Cause of course Luther and Maria are all "let Jesus into your heart and he'll take away the desire to sin like this he'll rid you of your devils"

  * And they still expect Aaron to function as normal while gil-deep in withdrawal

  * Andrew goes back to cutting himself

  * It starts off small, just little paper cuts under his fingernails

  * But then Luther starts telling him how he knows Andrew's gay, he saw his search history, he knows he's a sinner but God will forgive him if he lets them help him banish the devil from his soul

  * Andrew tells him to fuck off

  * Actually he tells him to go get fucked in the ass and suck the devil's dick

  * Needless to say they're not pleased and so cue them starting their own conversion therapy techniques on him cause hey it worked so we'll on Nicky who's now 100% straight and studying abroad with his 100% straight roommate

  * So they begin by outing him to Aaron in an attempt to shame him into confessing his sins

  * Aaron shrugs cause he already knew

  * Luther and Maria see that as conspiracy with the devil and condoning sin

  * So both twins get sent to conversion therapy sessions twice a week

  * And at home they get it shoved down their throats that they're sinners

  * Luther goes as far as telling Aaron about drake over dinner one evening and saying that if Andrew "stays gay" then he's no better than the sinners who abused him, and that he allowed them to plant the devil in his soul but if Aaron will help then they can save him still

  * Aaron tells them to fuck off

  * Cue Andrew upping the anti and full on slicing his arms to shreds almost daily

  * Aaron knows - he starts getting into med books so he can patch his brother up every night

  * It becomes a ritual for them

  * One night they're lying in Aaron's bed after he's seen to Andrew's arms-

  * "We need to get out of here"

  * Andrew just tilts his head - "we don't have anywhere else to go"

  * Aaron - "Andrew that was almost deep enough to kill you if you'd been alone. This is going too far. We need to get away from them before they make you kill yourself."

  * Andrew - "And I suppose you have a plan"

  * Aaron's silent for a beat and then he just says one sentence that somehow says more than a speech could have;

  * "They could have a car accident"

  * Andrew mulls it over but shakes his head - "The pigs would start sniffing around"

  * Aaron - "But they didn't when it was my mum"

  * Andrew, while sighing- "Your mum dies in a car accident, then a few months later her brother and his wife also die in another car accident. Tragic coincidence. But both accidents happen a few months after both twins have been living with them. Oh one of them has a record? And they both take engineering and mechanics classes? Too much of a coincidence." He looks over to Aaron- "we can't kill them without raising any red flags."

  * They're silent again until Aaron asks what they have to do to get put into foster care

  * Andrew - "You don't want that. This place is a dream compared. And there's no guarantee they'd even keep us together"

  * They both know what he means; "There's no guarantee I'll be there to protect you"

  * Aaron - "Then how do we get away?"

  * Andrew's silent for a few minutes and then - "Do you trust me to make the right decision for us even if it seems terrible?"

  * "Yes." Because Aaron does

  * The next day after school Andrew drags Aaron to the store and they lift some vodka, knives and matches - the alarm goes off and they run

  * They wait up in a field for the police to arrive and then they start running again but this time they pour vodka as they go, throwing the bottles across the field after they're empty and then Andrew lights a match

  * Needless to say they get arrested

  * They both fight as much as they can and scream and bite

  * Luther and Maria don't even try to save them

  * They get put in juvie in a cell together with 2 other boys

  * And they're still together and Andrew can still keep Aaron safe

  * By the time Wymack finds them a few years later, they're both hard and rough around the edges, enough so that even their personalities are identical

  * 


	3. What if Betsy adopted Andrew instead?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is wholesome I swear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hear me out

What if Tilda had the twins in California, took Aaron back and then moved to Colombia to be closer to Luther for the sake of child support and babysitting  
Andrew's first 10 years were spent in the foster system, getting passed from house to house   
Betsy was a child psychologist within the foster system, and she worked with all the kids who were assigned to the same social worker   
Andrew was one of them and he started sessions with her from like 4 or 5 years old   
He's happy as any 5 year old in the system is, and he's got a good group of friends, always says please & thank you, and is generally well behaved save for some pranks   
She doesn't see him for a few months when he's 7, and only finds out his latest home didn't work out when he's scheduled in by the social worker for an emergency meeting with her out of nowhere   
She's not got any context, just assumes he's upset over getting handed back again  
But when he's in that session he's a lot quieter, only speaks when spoken to, and his answers are as short as possible   
She's worried because he's never been like this before - not even when he was beaten up at a group home   
They play one of his favourite board games in an attempt to get him to open up   
At some point he holds his hands out for the duce and she just off handedly asks "aren't you going to say please this time?"  
His entire face changes and he throws the game against the far wall   
When she reaches for him he reels back with a snarled "Don't fucking touch me"  
He doesn't tell her what happened in that house   
He gets put in a few more but gets handed back because of his behaviour & violence   
When he's 9 he comes back from another home covered in bruises but this time Betsy sees the cuts on his arm and that's the last straw   
She files for fostering, and takes him home a few days after his 10th birthday   
He does the usual shit, lashes out, tries to push the buttons that have made every other foster family give him away   
But Betsy expects it and counters it   
Eighteen months later, he gives her an envelope for her birthday   
It's adoption papers and he asks her to sign them because he wants to stay with her   
She cries and signs them and they go out to a movie and he gets his favourite popcorn and puts chocolate drops in them because he can   
It's on his fourteenth birthday that he breaks down crying & tells her what happened in those homes when he was younger   
She knew it was bad and had assumed the worst, but hearing him say it & choke on the words whole gulping air just makes it hurt more   
When she asks what made him finally tell her he says that he saw his foster brother from when he was 7 in the store that day when they'd been picking up his cake since she always let him choose it   
Two weeks later, she asks if he wants to move somewhere new  
She got a job offer for a therapist position at a correctional facility is South Carolina, and it'd be a whole new start for him, away from the streets and areas he grew up being abused in   
He jumps at it and then they're moving   
He starts his new high school, and gets on the exy team, everything's great   
It's a big school, but he gets a good friend group pretty fast - between being the goalie on the exy team, breaking records for goals blocked, and being a cute boy from California with a mild attitude problem, he doesn't have much trouble making friends these days   
Living with Bee for the last five years have really made a difference to him, and she's been helping him through his PTSD, depression, anxiety and moodswings   
He's not out as gay, but he's quietly sure of it at this point and knows he wants to talk to Betsy about it because he doesn't know if it's real or from trauma   
Halfway through term, he sits down at the lunch table and instantly gets glared at by one of his friends  
"Oh so now you remember we exist?"  
Andrew's confused - "the fuck you on about?"  
The friend laughs - "Don't play dumb, Doe. Or are you really not going to own up to it?"  
"Own up to what?"   
"This morning in biology," the friend says and Andrew frowns. "You completely blanked me, and then when I called you out on it you acted like you didn't even know me."  
But that couldn't be right because - "I didn't even have biology this morning. I was in gym, chemistry and history for a fucking double period."  
Another one at the table speaks up - "Doe's right- he was with me in gym and history. We were walking together when he went into chem."  
The first friend just shakes their head, confused   
"But it was you," they insist. "How the fuck?"  
They all laugh and shrug it off and the day goes on   
But the next day it happens again with another friend - "Why'd you ignore me in the library today?"  
Andrew: "I didn't because I wasn't in the library"  
"Yeah you were"  
"When was the last time you ever heard of Doe willingly going to the library?" one of the others asks with a laugh. "He avoids it like the fucking plague, come on."  
And the next day  
"Since when do you bother going to study hall?"  
"I don't. You know I don't need to." Because yeah he likes showing off with his eidetic memory cause it means he literally never studies he just glances at stuff   
"You were there today Doe, stop pulling this shit"  
"If I was there what was I doing?"  
"Taking notes for trig."  
The others at the table laugh - "I'm pretty sure Doe doesn't even own a notebook. Have you ever seen him write a single thing down for a class?"  
Across the next two weeks, the table gets divided into the friends who claim Andrew blanked them at some point when he says he was somewhere else, and the friends who don't believe it because no way could he have been in two places at once  
"No, seriously, it was him," one of the friends says - "But when I started talking to you it was like you had no idea who I was. And I asked you about that thing at practice yesterday, and you had no idea what I was on about. You even said you're not on the team."  
"Was he doing the accent?" one of the others asks and the first snorts   
"Yeah it was like you were trying to sound like you're from around here, but it just didn't work"  
"I think it sounds more like he's trying to be from Columbia," Another adds in  
Andrew: "Isn't that a Latin country?"  
"No, that's Colombia. I mean Columbia, the city. It's like three hours west of here."  
Andrew shrugs cause he doesn't even know what that accent sounds like and he knows it wasn't him but still doesn't get how so many of his friends are convinced it was   
a few more days go by and he gets a phone call during his free period.  
"Where are you right now?" one of his friends asks   
"On the roof," Andrew says because he is he's on the school roof sitting in the shade and enjoying the view of campus   
"Are you sure?"  
"Yes I'm sure," he says. "Why?"  
"Because I'm standing outside the door to chem and staring at you right now."  
Andrew frowns because he knows there is no way in hell his friend can see the roof from the school hallway   
"Stay there," he decides as he heads for the roof access door. "Call me back if I move."  
He hurries through the school until he gets to the chemistry classroom and sure enough his friend is waiting against the wall outside but now he looks like he saw a ghost as he watches Andrew walk towards him   
"What the fuck" is all his friend manages to get out before Andrew's peering into the class  
It takes a few seconds but then he freezes as his entire body locks up   
Sure enough, a direct copy of him is sitting in the room, taking notes and actually looks like he's paying attention   
He's sitting near the middle of the class, which Andrew never does because that risks getting called on to actually participate - he always sits in the back row   
His head is spinning as he waits the last five minutes before the class gets out   
Thankfully his friend sticks around and grabs the doppelganger as he leaves the room  
"What the hell-" Sure enough there's a different accent, just as the others had said   
"For the last time I don't know you-"  
"No but he does" Andrew's friend says and that's when the doppelganger turns to actually look at Andrew for the first time   
They both freeze and are just staring at each other in shock   
"Dude - you could have just said you had a twin" His friend says at some point   
"I didn't know" both blondes say at the same time   
They end up going to the bathroom and staring at not each other & themselves in the mirror   
Other than a slight difference in tan and haircuts and their clothes, they're identical   
They take a selfie together (anyone remember the chaos that was 02-05 flipphone selfies???) and go their separate ways for the day  
When he gets home Andrew asks Betsy about the details of his adoption and foster past - if there was any record of his biological family, any reason for him getting put into the system in the first place   
Betsy says what he already knows - that he was only entered into the system under a first name, with his date of birth and place of birth, all of which he already knew  
When she asks why he hands her the phone with a selfie of him and the identical twin on it  
"His name is Aaron Minyard, and he and his mother lived in Columbia with his aunt, uncle and cousin until they moved up here after his mother and uncle fell out," he says while Betsy stares disbelieving at the photo of the two boys   
"He was born in California, though. His mother moved to Columbia to be close to her brother after she broke up with his father."  
Betsy pulled him in & they both started crying   
Over next few weeks the twins get to know each other & introduce each other to their friend groups   
Meanwhile Betsy helps Andrew start to come to terms with knowing he got put up for adoption while his brother was kept by their mother - "Why wasn't I good enough next to him? Why not keep both of us or give us both up? Why keep one?"  
It's a hard blow cause he's already got self esteem issues from the trauma he went through in the system   
After almost three months they decide to meet each other's parents   
Aaron meets Betsy first and straight up she can see he's being abused but is used to it so it must have been an ongoing thing throughout his life   
When he leaves she tells Andrew to keep his guard up when meeting their biological mother, and he agrees because he's noticed bruises on Aaron's arms and face in the past that he's just shrugged off as a fight or unimportant   
So he thinks he's ready   
But when she comes home and sees both twins on the sofa she freaks out and screams for Andrew to leave, that he's not wanted, that he was never wanted and never will be   
Aaron's close to crying at this point because he wants his brother   
She throws Andrew out he goes back to Betsy for a night of cuddles and chocolate and crying while Aaron gets beaten   
That night Betsy gets a call at like 2am   
"Dr Dobson?" Aaron's voice asks   
"Aaron what's wrong? What happened?"  
"It's uhm- it's a long story and kind of hard to explain over the phone. Can you come get me please?"  
"Where are you?"   
"At the hospital. They won't let me leave without an adult."  
Betsy leaves immediately and is there in record time   
Aaron is sitting in a room curled up on one of those larger seats when Betsy gets let in to see him and he starts crying as soon as he sees her   
He's got one arm in a cast, a broken-but-fixed nose, and a dressing on the side of his head, and she can see the outline of bandages under his clothes   
"Aaron did your mother do this?" Her voice is soft and gentle and everything Aaron never got to hear  
He just nods & she holds him closer   
"Tell me what happened."  
"When she saw Andrew she freaked out and after he left she was still screaming. She thought I'd went and found him on purpose, said it was my fault, and then started - started hitting me. I knew it was gonna be bad but she's never broken bones before, and she already knew how to fix stuff she dislocated after the second hospital visit when I was a kid. But she was so mad, I'd never seen her like that before. After she was done she realised she'd broken my arm, so she got me in the car to bring me here. But she was still mad and screaming. In the car on the way here we were both shouting, and she - she took her eyes off the road for a second, just a second - and she - the car - she crashed. But she hadn't put her seat belt on and she went through the window. They got ambulances and police but - but she didn't make it."   
He's almost incoherent by the end and he's shaking so much   
"They - they said I have to move in with my aunt and uncle in Columbia," he whispers. "But I can't- I can't- I can't live with them. They put their son in conversion therapy, Dobson. Conversion therapy. And they're religious freaks. I can't leave Andrew, please don't make me go with them, please."  
Betsy holds him closer and kisses his cheek - "You won't be going anywhere with them, and you're coming home with me. Alright?"   
He nods and she stays curled up with him   
It takes a while- they have to wait for Luther and Maria to show up- and the social workers - but eventually Betsy intimidates them enough to let her take Aaron home for a few days, and she agrees to file for custodial rights first thing the next day   
By the time they get back to her place it's almost dawn   
They know Andrew will be getting up at six to go down to early morning practice   
When they get in, Betsy gets Aaron to sit on the sofa while she goes up to get Andrew out of bed   
She knocks on the door and gets a grumbled "Fuck off" from the other side of the door  
"Andrew, this is important"  
"It's not even six"  
"Andrew"  
A groan and then Andrew's unlocking the door (she agreed he could get a lock on the inside for privacy when she fostered him - it was one of the deciding factors in his decision to let her adopt him) and glowering at her   
"Where's the fucking fire, Bee?"   
But he wakes up a bit when he sees how raw her eyes are   
"Bee what's wrong?"  
She just gestures to the staircase- "Go downstairs. There's something we need to talk about"  
100% awake now, Andrew goes down to the living room & balks when he sees Aaron sitting on the sofa covered in bandages and bruises and in a fucking cast   
"What the fuck did she do?" He knows it was their mother he knows   
But Aaron starts crying and Andrew goes over to kneel on the floor in front of him - "Where is she? Why the fuck did she just leave you like this?"  
Aaron cries harder and Betsy steps in - "That's what we need to talk about, Andrew"  
Aaron takes a breath as Betsy walls further into the room   
He tells Andrew about the crash & that their mother didn't make it   
Andrew's frozen & silent for long enough that Betsy sits on the sofa to make sure he's not go be into shock   
Neither of them knew how he'd react to the news - on one hand he hadn't known the woman, but on the other hand she was his biological mother   
But they'd known his protective streak would show through as soon as he saw Aaron needed him   
Eventually Aaron reaches out with his good arm and cups the side of Andrew's face   
Andrew startles slightly but calms when his brain catches up that it's just Aaron  
"Did you get hurt in the crash?"  
"Just glass from the window," Aaron says, gesturing to the dressing on his forehead. "And a concussion."  
Andrew processes that - "Ok"  
He looks to Betsy & asks what happens now & she smiles weakly as she looks between them   
"I'm filing for custody to adopt Aaron," she says and Andrew's eyes light up in relief   
"I'm calling them at six to get the forms sent over as quickly as possible. Aaron's getting the rest of the week off from school, but it's up to you if you stay off with him."  
Andrew nods and Betsy hugs them both & kisses their cheeks before going through to make breakfast so that Aaron can get his next dose of painkillers   
Andrew takes the rest of the week off & rarely leaves his brother's side   
When they start back at school the week after, they're glued to each other like velcro   
They stick together for the rest of the school year   
Nicky comes down to visit at the weekends over the summer after finding out about the twins and the crash from his parents & Andrew quickly gets attached to his cousin   
In the new school year, Andrew convinces Aaron to try out for the exy team   
By the time they're thinking about graduation, they've both caught Kevin's eye and Wymack schedules a meeting as soon as he finds out they're both adopted   
Aaron agrees to join the Foxes as long as Andrew gets to come too, since it's either both of them or neither   
They both end up signing the contracts that day


End file.
